


Birthday Etiquette

by AlchemyAlice



Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Comment Fic, Crack, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-10-30
Updated: 2010-10-30
Packaged: 2017-10-23 02:16:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/245155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlchemyAlice/pseuds/AlchemyAlice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Yusuf's birthday, and Ariadne is the only person who actually knows what to do about that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Birthday Etiquette

Ariadne came in to the warehouse two weeks into the job with a large striped box. Eames eyed it. "Is that...cake?"

"It might be," Ariadne replied, and kept walking. 

"Who are the designated participants in the eating of said cake, darling?"

"Depends," she singsonged, and turned the corner.

Eames considered tagging after her, but he was fairly sure doing so would incur Cobb's impatient wrath, so he grumbled instead and turned back to his files.

Arthur was at his computer around the bend. He did a very mild and highly controlled doubletake. "Ariadne, why do you have...?"

"Cake?" she finished, her pace not faltering. "It's a mystery for the ages." 

Arthur raised an eyebrow, and didn't comment further.

There was a small explosion as she approached the farthest workstation, and she used the cloud of resulting smoke to avoid Cobb and then plant herself on the extra seating next to Yusuf.

Yusuf was busy coughing and waving his hands.

As the smoke cleared, he peered at her through safety goggles. "Ariadne. What can I do for you?"

"I think the real question here is what  _I_  can do for  _you_ ," she replied, smirking slightly. She held up the box by its ribbons. "Unless your muttered curses were inaccurate last week?"

He cocked his head. "You got me cake for my birthday?"

"Everyone ought to have cake on their birthday."

"And that," he said, taking the box from her and smiling before raising his voice for the benefit of the rest of the warehouse, "Is why you are invited to my party, and the rest of you bastards aren't!"

"I knew it was your birthday," Arthur commented from across the way.

"You only know that because you have my files," Yusuf retorted.

"And did you get him cake? No," Ariadne said. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

Arthur said dryly, "Color me ashamed."

"My party is going to be amazing," Yusuf confided. 

"I have no doubt," Ariadne replied, and smiled.

 

 

 _Some time later:_

 

"It's not just a sign of affection," Cobb pushed a hand violently through his hair, "It could be anything. In Yusuf's case, it could have been a gesture of appreciation for his work--"

"My very, very hard work," Yusuf interjects from across the room.

"His very, very hard work," Cobb corrects himself. "Do you see?"

Arthur shrugs. "I suppose. It just wasn't something that ever happened to me."

"You never got presents?" Ariadne says, with a tone that suggests that Arthur had just revealed that he was, in fact, a starving child in Africa.

"Not really."

"Even when you were little?"

"My family was military and traveling. It didn't make sense to accumulate excess belongings."

"You poor, present-starved soul," Eames marvels. 

"That's it," Cobb explodes. "I'm buying you presents."

He storms from the warehouse. Eames cocks an eyebrow at Arthur, who is watching the retreat in a sort of concerned confusion. 

"Darling," he says, "I think you'd better brace yourself for some serious belongings accumulation."

"That was  _adorable,_ " Ariadne whispers. "Like, almost as adorable as kittens over rainbows."

Yusuf nods grave agreement.

 


End file.
